Now You See It, Now You Don't
by Spammi
Summary: Hogwarts and all other signs of the wizarding world disappear, leaving Hermione and Draco to try and find out exactly what has happened, and why they alone know of the other world. Sucky summary I know, please just r
1. Default Chapter

Now You See It, Now You Don't  
  
"DON'T WALK AWAY FROM ME MUDBLOOD!"  
  
"DON'T CALL ME MUDBLOOD, FERRET FACE!"  
  
"HOW DARE YOU!?"  
  
"STOP SHOUTING AT ME!"  
  
"YOU STOP SHOUTING AT ME!"  
  
"For god's sake Malfoy, I'm standing five feet away from you, I am perfectly capable of hearing you without you shouting like that!"  
  
Malfoy glared at Hermione. "Well the same goes for you Mudblood." Hermione's eyes flashed at the name, but Malfoy continued, ignoring her reaction. "Besides, you started it."  
  
Hermione rolled her eyes. Boys were so immature sometimes. "I hate to break it to you Malfoy, but you are the one who yelled at me first. And don't call me a Mudblood!" her voice was getting more and more high pitched as she spoke until she shrieked the last word. Malfoy looked slightly surprised, but then quickly hid it.  
  
"Why not, it's what you are." he said coolly.  
  
Hermione just stared at him for a moment, then took a step toward him. A shadow of fear passed over his face and he stepped away from her. Hermione smirked. "Don't worry; I wouldn't waste my energy just to hit you."  
  
He glared at her. "Like you could." he sneered.  
  
'He's just provoking you,' Hermione thought. 'Just let it go, walk away.' But she couldn't. She merely stood there glaring at the blonde boy.  
  
He shifted uncomfortably under her gaze. "Do you want something Granger? You're polluting my oxygen, not to mention you're an eyesore. Get out of my way Mudblood!" He pushed her shoulder to walk past, instantly knowing it was a bad idea. Hermione smacked him on the back of the head, hard. He swung round and raised his hand to hit her back, but she was too quick to him. She slapped him and pushed him to the ground. He yelled in pain and made to stand up, but stopped abruptly when Hermione shoved her wand in his face. He looked up into her eyes, not caring that he looked extremely scared.  
  
"Don't...ever...call me that again." Hermione said, shaking with anger. "You...you..." she was cut off by a rumbling sound. She looked up, not lowering her wand, and glanced down the corridor. "What the..." she murmured as the rumbling got louder. Malfoy tried to crawl away but Hermione put her foot on his chest. She turned her attention back to him, and said in a low, dangerous voice, "Stay there ferret. You'll pay for -"  
  
Again she was cut off, this time by the ground shaking. She lost her balance and tumbled on top of Malfoy, who snorted in disgust and pushed her off of himself. He struggled to his feet and held onto the wall for support.  
  
"What's going on?" whispered Hermione.  
  
Malfoy ignored her and took a shaky step.  
  
"Wait for me!" squeaked Hermione, scrambling to her feet and grabbing her wand which had fallen a few feet away. She went to follow Malfoy, but a particularly violent shake sent her flying into his back. He growled and managed to stop himself from falling. He turned and glared at Hermione. "Do you mind?"  
  
"Oh shut up, it's not like I did it on purpose!" she retorted. "Besides, why would I want to touch you if it wasn't necessary?"  
  
"Whatever Mu...Granger."  
  
Hermione pulled a face at him and stood up again.  
  
Malfoy turned away and glared into the darkness. He wondered what was going on; it was eerily silent and no candles were lit, making it extremely difficult to see where he was going. "Lumos," he muttered, hearing Hermione do the same a few feet behind him.  
  
They continued walking down the corridor, wands drawn, trying to ignore the rumbling noise, which was steadily getting louder and louder until it was deafening. The ground shook again and Hermione whimpered and grabbed Malfoy's arm.  
  
"Get off me!"  
  
Hermione shook her head and clung to him even tighter. He glowered and shook his arm, trying to remove her hands. "Bloody hell woman, get off!"  
  
Hermione ignored him and he sighed. He began walking quickly, practically dragging Hermione behind him. After walking for what seemed like hours, he suddenly stopped and turned to face Hermione.  
  
"Blood supply." he said.  
  
Hermione frowned. "What?"  
  
"Blood supply. We need it to stay alive, right?"  
  
"...yeah..." agreed Hermione. She wondered where he was going with this.  
  
"Well you're cutting mine off."

"Wha...?"  
  
Malfoy held up his arm, onto which Hermione's hand was firmly clamped. She quickly moved it and looked at her feet. "Sorry," she mumbled. Malfoy smirked and rubbed his arm. He pulled up his sleeve to find a very red mark on his forearm, finger prints and all. He looked at Hermione, daring her to say something.  
  
She stared back at him defiantly, determined not to make a comment. They held eye contact for a full 30 seconds before Hermione rolled her eyes and looked away. She glanced back down the corridor, trying to work out how long they had walked.  
  
"Can't've been that far." she muttered. "We've only been walking for about ten minutes...still, I never knew the Hogwarts corridors were so long..." she trailed off when she saw Malfoy looking at her intently.  
  
"You do know that talking to yourself is a sign of madness don't you Granger?"  
  
"So's having hair on the palm of your hand."  
  
Malfoy looked confused. "I don't have hair on..." he paused and lifted up his left hand, inspecting his palm. He moved his wand closer for extra light and narrowed his eyes. He looked back at Hermione. "See? I don't have hair on the palm of my hand so..."  
  
"Another sign is looking for said hair." Hermione interrupted.  
  
Malfoy looked stumped and glared at Hermione. He knew she had tricked him, but wouldn't admit that she had got the better of him.  
  
Hermione felt his anger and hatred for her radiating from his body and unconsciously took a couple of steps away from him. She walked forward, then hesitated. She turned back to Malfoy.  
  
"D'you reckon we're going the right way? Or should we go back that way?" she pointed back the way they had come. "And what corridor are we in, anyway?"  
  
Malfoy shrugged and glared at Hermione. "How should I know, I'm the one who's crazy, remember?"  
  
Hermione stared at him. She hadn't been expecting that. She continued staring as Malfoy started inspecting his nails. At length he sighed as though he had just made an incredible decision, and moved away from the wall he had been leaning on.  
  
"We'll carry on the way we're going. Who knows where it'll end up. With any luck, the kitchens. I'm starving."  
  
Hermione rolled her eyes for what felt like the millionth time that day, and began to follow Malfoy as he sauntered off down the corridor. The witch sighed. 'God I'm following him like a lost puppy,' she thought to herself. She was lost in her thoughts when suddenly she tripped. "Ah! Bloody hell!" she cried as she steadied herself.  
  
Malfoy turned to her, an amused expression on his face. "Honestly Granger, do you kiss you're mother with that mouth? I'm ashamed."  
  
Hermione glared at him. "Get lost Malfoy."  
  
"Well that was a low blow." he drawled. "I'll run away at that one."  
  
Hermione debated hitting him again, but decided it wasn't worth it. She couldn't even think of a good comeback, so, with as much dignity as she could muster, she marched past him and continued down the corridor. She heard him jog to catch up and then fall into step with her. She eyed him out of the corner of her eye and found that he was grinning.

'Honestly, he's so pathetic!' she angrily thought to herself. 'And I wouldn't even be in this mess if it weren't for him...' she suddenly remembered why she had been standing in a corridor yelling at Malfoy. He had insulted Ron's parents (again), causing Ron to try and curse him. Luckily for Malfoy his mate Blaise had been standing nearby and had caught Ron just as Ron's curse missed Malfoy and hit Blaise. Unfortunately for Ron, Snape had happened to be passing and had sent the two boys up to the hospital wing, with a week of detentions for the red head, and 10 points removed from Gryffindor just because Harry had happened to be standing nearby. 'Urgh, he's so unfair!' she thought to herself.  
  
"What?"  
  
Hermione turned in surprise to Malfoy, who was looking at her in a confused manner.  
  
"Did I say that...out...out loud?" she stammered.  
  
Malfoy smirked again. "Yes Granger; that would be why I asked you what you were going on about. Really, I think you have a lot of cheek saying I'm crazy when you walk along muttering to yourself and..."  
  
He continued his rambling as they walked, but Hermione wasn't listening. She was staring intently at the ceiling. Was it her, or was that crack slowly getting bigger and bigger?  
  
She snapped out of her trance when Malfoy grabbed her arm and waved his hand in front of her face.  
  
"Were you even listening Granger?"  
  
"What? Oh...of course...erm, yeah...potions was great..."  
  
Malfoy raised an eyebrow then released her arm. "Yeah whatever," he said.  
  
Suddenly they both heard a loud crash and looked back down the corridor, searching for the whereabouts of the mysterious noise.  
  
"What was that?" asked Malfoy. Hermione was pleased to notice a trace of panic in his voice.  
  
"It was a noise Malfoy, look it up -" she stopped when she noticed a piece of the ceiling begin to fall and grabbed Malfoy, pulling him out of the way.  
  
"Oi what are you...Ah!" He stared at the fallen rock, eyes wide with fear. He glanced at Hermione, who was also staring at the rock. "Er, Granger? I think we should get outta here." Hermione nodded and they both set of at a run down the corridor. They could hear the ceiling caving in behind them.  
  
"What the hell is happening?" yelled Malfoy over the noise.  
  
"I don't...MALFOY LOOK OUT!" screamed Hermione.  
  
Malfoy stopped and looked back at Hermione, who was pointing at something above his head. He slowly looked up, just in time for a large piece of the ceiling to meet with his skull. He slumped to the floor, vaguely aware of Hermione screaming his name and pulling on his arm. 'Christ woman, that hurts!' he thought. He heard Hermione scream, followed by a loud thud, which he assumed was her being knocked out too. 'This is not good...' he thought, before everything went black.

A/N: Well, whaddya think? It's my first HP fic, so be nice, but reviews are very much welcome!! Feel free to criticise.  
  
Cheers to Fringy for coming up with the title, couldn't of done it without you! Have some cheese!  
  
Anyhow, enough of the randomness, next chapter will be up soon. Hope ya liked...


	2. Chapter 2

Now You See It, Now You Don't – Chapter Two  
  
A/N: Sorry I took a while to post this, took me a while to actually write it hehe. Oh and also sorry it's such a dull chapter, trust me, it will get better!  
  
And I forgot to say last time: I don't own anything remotely HPish ('cept the books) so don't sue. ( danke schon!  
  
Malfoy groaned and opened an eye. He found himself lying in a house somewhere...he didn't know where, or who's house it was for that matter. He opened his other eye and saw a girl lying down on the other side of the room. He couldn't see her face, but he recognised the bushy hair...  
  
"Granger." he croaked. He sat up and clutched his head. He had a pounding headache, and from the feel of it, a cut on his forehead. He blinked and looked around the room. Everything was so white.  
  
"I'm in St. Mungo's," he thought to himself. But it didn't look like St. Mungo's. Looking around the room again he saw the black leather sofa and armchairs, the tall lamps in the corner, the curtains with a floral design on, the huge box with a black screen in front of which he was currently sitting. He did a double take. Crawling closer to the odd box, he reached out a hand and touched the screen. Nothing happened. He stared at it in wonder, silently questioning himself as to why he had never seen such an object.  
  
Suddenly everything that had happened came back to him. He'd been in a corridor at Hogwarts with Granger, for reasons unknown to him, when there had been that noise...and the ceiling had caved in...but why? What did it mean? What had happened at Hogwarts? And where was he now? He was snapped out of his musings by Hermione stirring in the corner. He looked at her, then crawled over to where she lay. He rolled her over and inspected her face. She had a bump on her head – presumably from where she had been hit by falling rock. She opened her eyes slightly.  
  
"Malfoy?" she whispered. He nodded in reply. "What happened? Where are we?"  
  
Malfoy shrugged. "I dunno...that corridor in Hogwarts must have collapsed. Don't know where we are now. Looks like the loony bin. Everything's so white. It's...weird." He shivered.  
  
Hermione opened her eyes fully and blinked a couple of times, adjusting her eyes to the light. She suddenly sat bolt upright and stared around the room, eyes wide. "It can't be..."  
  
"What?"  
  
"It looks like...but no...that's impossible...and why would..."  
  
Malfoy waited for her to continue, and when she didn't he said, "Well thanks for clearing that up. Suddenly it all just makes so much more sense."  
  
Hermione looked at him. "What?" Without waiting for an answer she pulled herself to her feet and put her hand on the wall to stop herself from falling. She was vaguely aware of Malfoy speaking to her, but she couldn't hear him. She frowned and shook her head, then glanced around the room again. 'Why are we here, of all places?' she thought.  
  
Malfoy also stood up, a little more steadily than Hermione, and frowned at her. "Granger, hellooo? Hermione!"  
  
She jumped when she shouted her name and looked back at him. "Yes?"  
  
"You were ignoring me and I don't appreciate it."  
  
"Uh-huh..."  
  
"You don't care, do you?"  
  
"Nope."  
  
"Thought as much. Anyway, d'you know where we are? It's a bit of an odd place, isn't it? Something doesn't feel quite right about it..."  
  
"I have a hunch. Stay here, I'll be right back." she said, moving towards the door.  
  
"I don't take orders from Mudbloods."  
  
Hermione was too tired to argue, so she just said, "Please?"  
  
Malfoy looked surprised by this, then he shrugged. "Whatever, just don't be too long. This place gives me the creeps."  
  
Hermione walked out of the door, and Malfoy looked around the room again. His eyes came to rest on some ornaments on a shelf and he moved forward to get a closer look, when suddenly Hermione poked her head around the door.  
  
"And don't touch anything." she said, disappearing from sight again.  
  
Malfoy glared at the empty space where she had been standing, and then turned back round to look at the ornaments. However, something caught his eye and distracted him; it was a selection of photo frames on the mantle of the fire place. He looked at the first one. It showed a baby, staring right back at him, a bemused expression on its face. He grinned to himself; it was kinda cute. His eyes moved onto the next one: a toddler with long brown hair, poking her tongue out at the person taking the picture. Next was a small child, smiling widely, who appeared to be showing off her new school uniform. He frowned at the photo. The girl looked strangely familiar, but he couldn't quite place her face. Shrugging, he moved onto the next and final photo. It was the same girl, about seven years on, grinning again, and wearing long black robes, pointing at a letter she held in her hand.  
  
Malfoy's mouth opened in surprise. 'It's...Granger.' he thought. He reached out and picked up the picture and stared intently at the eleven year old Hermione. She had obviously just received her Hogwarts letter and had just been to buy her new uniform. He looked at her bushy hair and thought about how it had calmed down as she had got older, about how it now fell to just past her shoulders in loose curls –  
  
"MALFOY!" He jumped and dropped the photo. It fell to the floor and the glass covering smashed, sending a shower of glass everywhere. He turned round guiltily to see Hermione standing in the doorway, holding a first air box and glaring at him. He had never seen her so angry. "I'm...sorry," he said quickly.  
  
Hermione stormed into the room. "I told you not to touch anything!" she screamed at him.  
  
"I didn't mean to."  
  
"Oh, so the photo attracted your hand like a magnetic force, did it?"  
  
"No...I..." she had him there. He hesitated.  
  
"You what Malfoy!?" Hermione was still screaming, but she didn't care. "Is your sole purpose in life to make my life hell? Do you ruin my stuff on purpose?"  
  
"I didn't know it was yours!"  
  
"That makes it ok then, does it?" He didn't reply. "Well?"  
  
Malfoy sighed. "No. Look I'm really sorry, it just slipped and...I'll fix it for you..." he went to draw his wand, only to find it wasn't in his pocket. In fact, his pocket wasn't there wither. He looked down in surprise to find that he wasn't wearing his robes or school uniform, but jeans and a shirt. He looked at Hermione in confusion.  
  
"Where're our uniforms?"  
  
Hermione looked down at her top and trousers, then back at Malfoy. "That's a good question."  
  
"And I can't find my wand either." Malfoy looked around, searching for his wand. "Where is it?" he muttered.  
  
Hermione frowned. "I don't know where they are. Here." She threw the first aid box at Malfoy. "There's plasters and stuff in there, you know, for your cut."  
  
"Oh...thanks."  
  
Hermione crouched down and picked up the broken glass, putting it in the bin. She picked up the broken photo and placed it back on the mantle, staring at it for a moment, lost in her thoughts.  
  
Malfoy watched her. "So, this is house?" he asked.  
  
"Obviously."  
  
"It's...nice."  
  
"You don't have to lie, Malfoy; I know you don't like it." "I never said that...it's just smaller than what I'm used to."  
  
"Whatever." She turned and walked out of the room, Malfoy quickly following.  
  
"Where are you going?" he asked as she began to climb up the stairs.  
  
"My room. I guess my wand and stuff is in there."  
  
At the top of the stairs she turned left and walked down the hallway. She opened the first door she came to and walked in. Malfoy hesitated, then shrugged and followed her in.  
  
He found that Hermione's room was actually very different to what he would have expected. He would have thought that she would have quite a dark room with bookcase after bookcase lining the walls, but he could not have been more wrong. The walls were lilac, and she had a deep purple carpet. There was one bookcase at the far end of the room, and other than that there was a double bed, another machine of some sort (smaller than the one he had seen downstairs, but looking very similar) and finally a desk with a lot of odd looking objects on it.  
  
Hermione started searching her room for her Hogwarts things; she looked under her bed, in her wardrobe, everywhere. Malfoy walked over to her desk and inspected the round disks on it. Picking one up, he was surprised to see his reflection in it.  
  
'Must be a mirror.' he thought.  
  
At the moment Hermione looked up and saw him checking his reflection in her 'Back to the Movies' CD. She tutted, rolled her eyes, and walked over to him. She snatched it out of his hands and put it back in its case.  
  
"It's a CD you div." she said, returning to her search.  
  
"A what?" What on earth was a CD?  
  
"C-D." Hermione said slowly.  
  
"Not. A. Muggle." said Malfoy, pointing at himself.  
  
"Oh. Yeah. Erm...it's a disk...thing...and it stores music on it, then you put it in the CD player, that's what that is," she pointed at the small blue machine on her bedside table. "And the CD player reads the music and...well, plays it."  
  
Malfoy was still confused, but tried to look as though he understood. "That's...cool. So you're telling me Muggles did this without magic?"  
  
"Obviously."  
  
"Wow."  
  
"Yup." Hermione looked round her room again and then sighed in frustration.  
  
"What's up?" Trying not to appear to be too concerned about a Mudblood, Malfoy continued searching through Hermione's CD collection.  
  
"My stuff's not here! It's gone! Urgh where the hell is it!?" She kicked her bed in temper then winced when her toe connected with the solid wood.  
  
Malfoy snorted. "Now now Granger, that temper won't get you anywhere."  
  
Hermione turned round and glared at him, then a look of realisation appeared on her face.  
  
"Malfoy, what are you doing in my room!?" she said angrily.  
  
"Looking at your DC's." replied Malfoy, holding up 'Nickelback: Silver Side Up'.  
  
Hermione didn't bother to correct him, but grabbed his arm and dragged him downstairs.  
  
"Oi get off me!"  
  
Hermione released his arm and he rubbed it unconsciously. "You have got to stop doing that Granger. Next time you'll rip my whole bloody arm off!"  
  
Hermione ignored him and opened the front door, giving Malfoy a pointed look. He frowned and crossed his arms.  
  
"Where am I supposed to go, exactly?"  
  
"Why should I care? Home, perhaps? Just get out of my house!"  
  
"Fine, like I'd want to stay here anyway."  
  
"Good. Now, out!"  
  
Malfoy rolled his eyes and disappeared with a pop. Hermione jumped and stared in shock at the empty space where he had been standing.  
  
'He Apparated!' she thought. 'The git. Where'd he learn to do that?' Officially they still had a year and a bit until they were 'of age' and able to learn how to do this. Hermione huffed and slammed the front door. She stormed into the living room; she had a lot of thinking to do. 


	3. Chapter 3

Now You See It, Now You Don't – Chapter Three

Roses are red, violets are blue, I don't own and you don't sue! ï enjoy...

Ah yes and big thanks to gyrlfrend for the tip about reviews hehe. Thanks to everyone who has reviewed, I'm glad you like it so far, and I hope you carry on liking it

.........................................................

CRACK!

Hermione woke with a start and sat bolt upright. It was pitch black; she must have fallen asleep at least four hours ago.

"Lumos," she muttered, only to realise she didn't have her wand. She quietly stood up and padded into the hallway. She could hear somebody moving around in the kitchen but the light was not turned on. Slowly and silently she pushed open the door and slipped inside. She waited for her eyes to adjust to the light (or lack thereof), until she could see a dark figure moving towards her.

Not thinking, she grabbed a carving knife she knew to be near her hand and flipped the light switch to find herself facing a very shocked Malfoy.

He leapt back when he saw the knife and assumed a fighting stance, but when he realised it was Hermione he relaxed slightly (not totally due to her still wielding the knife).

"Christ woman what the bloody hell are you doing!?" he hissed.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN 'WHAT AM I DOING'? WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?" Hermione yelled, waving the knife in his face.

Malfoy eyed the knife warily and took another step backwards, holding his hands at shoulder height. "Ok, let me explain-" he began.

"I THOUGHT I TOLD YOU TO GO HOME!"

"I did go home! But-"

"WELL THEN WHY ARE YOU HERE?! WHAT'S THE MATTER, DID YOUR PARENTS NOT WANT A FERRET AROUND 24/7? WELL NEITHER DO I SO-"

"HERMIONE, SHUT UP!" yelled Malfoy.

Hermione was about to reply when she stopped. Did Malfoy just call her 'Hermione'? Something must be wrong...

She forced herself to speak calmly. "What are you doing here Malfoy?"

"Right. Well, I ...do you think you could put the knife down please?"

Hermione narrowed her eyes and glared at Malfoy. He didn't seem to be in a dangerous mood. In fact, it was only now that she noticed his shirt and face was spattered with something pink, and he looked more comical then anything else.

Not taking her eyes off the blonde boy, she placed the knife on the counter behind her, making sure it was as far away from Malfoy as possible.

He nodded and sank down into a chair at the table.

'Make yourself at home, why don't you?' thought Hermione as she sat opposite him. She glared at him, waiting for him to explain.

"OK, so I apparated home, and -"

"Oh yeah, where did you learn to Apparate? We're not supposed to be able to do that for..."

"Granger," Malfoy interrupted. "Shut up. That's not important right now."

Hermione opened her mouth to protest but Malfoy quickly continued his story. "Anyway, I apparated home, only, home wasn't there."

"What?"

"Malfoy Manor has disappeared."

'Uh-_huh_, because I'm _so_ going to believe that.' "Maybe you just...got lost?"

Malfoy looked at her ironically. "Don't you think I know where I live?"

"Well, yeah,"

"Thank you. I'm telling you it's just not there. The land is, but there's no sign that the Manor has ever been there!"

"And you're absolutely sure you were in the right place?" Malfoy arched an eyebrow. "I'll take that as a yes. But that's really weird. All of our stuff disappears, and then your house disappears..."

"Manor," Malfoy corrected.

"Whatever. There is something seriously weird going on."

"You don't say. But that's not all; when I found, or rather didn't find the Manor, I tried to Apparate to Hogwarts to see what's going on. But something weird happened. I ended up...well I don't know where I ended up, but it wasn't Hogwarts. Last time I checked Hogwarts didn't accept little kids that throw pink stuff at you!" he pointed at the pink stains on his shirt.

Hermione stared at him. "You guys are unbelievable!"

"What?"

"How many times do I have to say it; you CAN'T Apparate or Disapparate within Hogwarts grounds!"

"Well you could've told me that before -"

"You should've read Hogwarts: A History! Honestly, are you telling me you've been at Hogwarts for 6 years and you haven't read that book once!?"

Malfoy looked at Hermione nervously and shifted in his chair slightly, then his expression became cool again. "Of course I've read it, Granger. But that's not the point; the point is that everything magical is disappearing."

'Yeah right. You've read Hogwarts: A History and I'm a Blast Ended Skrewt. Hang on, back track, what was that about everything magical disappearing?' "It...is?" Hermione said uncertainly.

Malfoy smirked. "Obviously. How else do you explain our stuff being gone and the Manor not being where it's supposed to be?"

"Um..." Try as she might she actually couldn't explain that. "I don't know."

"Never though I'd see the day when ultra-smart Hermione Granger doesn't know the answer to a question."

"Shut up ferret-face. You're obviously forgetting whose house you're in!"

Malfoy raised his eyebrow at the word 'house' but didn't say anything.

"So you're saying that everything's gone? As in everything?"

"Yes," said Malfoy slowly, as though talking to a small child.

"But...but...it can't be! It...no. I refuse to believe that."

Malfoy looked at her and arched an eyebrow. "OK then, what exactly _has_ happened then?"

Hermione faltered. "Well, um..." The kitchen clock struck midnight and Hermione stood up. "I don't know, but I am sure there is a logical explanation, only right now I'm too tired to work it out. Now if you don't mind, _I'm_ going to bed. I'll think of what to do in the morning."

She walked towards the door, then turned back to Malfoy, who was still sitting at the table watching her, his icy blue-grey eyes boring into her.

"Er, do you wanna...stay here?" she asked uncertainly. She wasn't sure if he would agree, but she would feel mean if she didn't offer.

Malfoy weighed his options in his mind. He didn't really want to stay in the Mudblood's house, but at the same time he had nowhere else to go. As long as he didn't have to sleep on the sofa, no way. Also, although he would never admit it out loud, Hermione was smarter than him, and would probably think of a good plan to sort out this mess, so it would be a good idea to stay near her.

"Um, yeah alright."

Surprised by his answer, Hermione took a moment to reply. "Oh...ok. You can sleep in the spare room. C'mon. Oh, wait!" she stopped and handed Malfoy a towel, indicating for him to wipe his face clean. He took it and began to scrub off the pink sticky substance.

'Blasted kids,' he thought.

He wondered what to do with the towel, so just placed it on the table and followed Hermione up the stairs. Again, she turned left at the top of the stairs, only this time she stopped at the second door on her right. She pushed open the door and Malfoy looked into a cream-coloured room which was quite spacious. He also noticed that it was opposite Hermione's room. She walked in and he quickly followed.

"Bedding," said Hermione, opening a drawer under the bed and dumping its contents into Malfoy's arms. He looked at her blankly.

Hermione raised an eyebrow. "Don't tell me you've never made a bed?!"

"Um, only a couple of times," he replied quietly.

The girl rolled her eyes and grabbed the bedding back, and set to work making the bed. She carefully made sure the sheets were secure under the mattress, and that the duvet was flat inside the cover, and that the pillows were fluffed up and smooth. Malfoy silently watched her work. It didn't take her long, thankfully, as Malfoy was beginning to get tired. Finally Hermione finished and faced him.

"Oh yeah, bathroom's next door, it's the door directly in front of you when you come up the stairs. Night." She left the room, yawning. Malfoy watched her leave and just as she was about to close her bedroom door he said, "Thanks for..." She smiled sleepily at him and closed her door. He copied, then pulled off his shirt and collapsed on the bed, falling asleep the moment his head touched the pillow."

The next morning Malfoy walked into the kitchen yawning and rubbing his eyes. He noticed Hermione standing in front of the fridge, inspecting its contents, and cleared his throat. She didn't even jump.

'Darn,' he though to himself.

"Do you always sleep this late, Malfoy?" Hermione asked, shutting the fridge door and turning to the counter, still not looking round at Malfoy.

"Huh?" He glanced at the clock; it read 10:30. "Late? What are you talking about? It's only half ten!"

Finally Hermione turned round to face Malfoy, but noticing he was shirtless, blushed and quickly looked at her feet.

Malfoy smirked at her reaction, then slowly and deliberately stretched, showing off all of his well toned stomach and chest muscles. He noticed that Hermione's cheeks turned a deeper shade of pink. She had obviously been looking up at him through her eyelashes.

'Not such an innocent goody-goody after all then, eh?' Malfoy thought. He debated asking her if she liked what she saw, but figured it probably wasn't the best of ideas.

Hermione took a deep breath and composed herself. She looked up, but determinedly stared at a spot on the wall to Malfoy's right, not daring to look at his body again.

"And what do you call half past ten if not late?" she asked. "_I_ have been up since 7:30!"

'Well then, more fool you,' "Er...normal...ish?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. 'Lazy arse,' she thought. "Fair enough. Erm, do you want some breakfast?"

'Finally, thought you'd never ask!' "Yes please. What do you have?"

"Cereal, cereal, more cereal, or you can have toast, bacon. I dunno. What do you want?"

"Toast sounds good." he replied.

"'kay." Hermione grabbed some bread and put it in the toaster. Malfoy watched her curiously; why was she putting his breakfast in a piece of metal? Did it somehow make it taste nicer? And how was toast made, anyway? Hermione pushed down the button on the toaster and turned back to Malfoy, trying to suppress a giggle at his confused face.

"Do you...want a cup of tea or...anything?" she asked.

"Erm, please," He wondered where she was going to put this.

But Hermione just filled the kettle with water and switched it on, where it began to make a quiet but shrill whistling noise. Malfoy unconsciously took a few steps away from it. Hermione then went to the fridge, took out the milk, poured some into a mug, returned the milk to the fridge, and then finally added a teabag to the mug.

"Right, when the water's boiled pour it into the mug and stir the teabag round 'til it's strong enough for you. If you want sugar it's in that cupboard...oh and when the toast is done you'll find margarine in the fridge and other fillings in that cupboard. Okay?"

Malfoy nodded slowly, trying to remember everything she had just said. He made a mental note to tell her not to speak so fast.

"Good. I'll be back in a bit." Hermione hurried out of the kitchen and Malfoy heard her run up the stairs.

Malfoy walked over to the kettle and bit his lip. How would he know when it was boiled? He reached out a hand and touched it...but recoiled quickly due to it burning his finger. He swore, then jumped when he heard a loud 'ding' and the sound of something flying into the air. He turned round in time to see his toast begin its descent and leapt forward to catch it. This was one of the times he was extremely grateful for being a Seeker in Quidditch. He quickly put the toast on the plate Hermione had left on the table and retrieved the margarine from the fridge. He put it on the side and removed its lid. Right, now how to get some from the tub onto the toast.

He glanced around the kitchen hoping for a sign. He thought back over all the Muggle conversations he had overheard; why had none of them been about spreading margarine on toast?

Growing impatient he decided to go without margarine and took a bite out of his toast. He was just about to sit down at the table to finish eating when the kettle started whistling even louder, and he turned round to see steam billowing from it.

"What the...!?" he cried, jumping up from his seat and nearly knocking it over. He moved closer to the kettle cautiously. After about 20 seconds, it seemed to calm down.

"Does that mean it's boiled?" he murmured. Shrugging, he decided to take his chances and carefully lifted it out of its holder and poured the water into his mug. He quickly returned it to the holder, before it could go crazy again.

Hermione re-entered the kitchen, her hair now practically dry, to see Malfoy idly stirring his tea and munching on toast.

"Ah, you got it all sorted out alright then?" she asked as she helped herself to some orange juice.

"Yeah," Malfoy replied after a slight hesitation.

Hermione nodded and leant over the counter to plug in the radio.

"What's that?"

"What's what?" she asked

"That...square-ish thing, with those things sticking out of it." Malfoy pointed at the object he meant, knowing he wasn't explaining it particularly well.

"Oh you mean the plug? It's..." Hermione wasn't sure how to explain the fine art of how plugs and sockets worked so that Malfoy understood, so she decided to go for the simple and easy way out. "When you put them in the plug socket, that's that hole in the wall there (she pointed at it) it makes the appliance you're plugging in work."

She hoped this helped, although it wasn't a very clear description. Shrugging, she tuned the radio to her favourite station and sat at the table with pen and paper. She scowled slightly when The Cheeky Girls came on.

"Er, Granger, can you hear that?" Malfoy asked after a while.

"Hear what?" Hermione tilted her head slightly, trying to listen past the god-awful song.

"I can hear...well...voices..." Malfoy was a little embarrassed by admitting this, after all, it wasn't a good sign if you could hear voices, but it was very worrying, especially considering what they were telling him to do.

"You can?"

'Wait, is it just me or does Granger seem concerned?' "Yeah, they're telling me to...to take my shoes off. But I'm not even wearing my shoes!"

Hermione didn't even try to hide her giggles this time; she burst out laughing, which annoyed Malfoy to the extreme.

"What? What's so funny? Stop laughing at me!" Hermione still didn't stop laughing, so Malfoy slumped back in his chair with his arms crossed, a pout dominating his features.

'Aww big bad Draco's upset!' Shuddering with silent laughter, Hermione wiped the tears of mirth from her eyes. "I'm sorry...its just, it was funny!" She stopped when he glared at her. "It's the radio you can hear, more specifically a song called "Take Your Shoes Off". I can hear it too!"

"Oh. So...I'm not going mad?"

There was an obvious hesitation before Hermione replied, "Nope," which Malfoy did notice but chose to ignore.

"What's a radio?"

"It's that machine there, you know, that I plugged into the socket. It plays music and stuff."

"Like your...what were they, CD's?"

"Yeah, sorta,"

Malfoy thought about the noises made by the kettle, toaster, and now the radio. "Does everything you plug into a socket thingy make a noise?"

"Er, pretty much, yeah." 'If you count whistling and whirring in that.'

The doorbell ringing broke the awkward silence, and Hermione hurried out of the kitchen, leaving Malfoy sitting at the table thinking, absent-mindedly twirling a fork he had found on the table in his fingers.

'I wonder what noise a fork makes when you put it into a socket?' Malfoy thought. Curiosity getting the better of him, he rose from his seat and crossed over to the counter. He reached forward to push the fork's prongs into the socket when suddenly...

"Malfoy, no!"

.........................................................

So, did ya like?? Personally this is my fave chappie so far; a lot of fun to write lol. Sorry it took so long to post, but there was this whole thing where I went away for a week and forgot to take the first half with me and then wrote the second half while I was away, then I thought I'd lost the second half and....ANYWAY, please r&r chankie doodles


	4. Chapter 4

Now You See It, Now You Don't

Disclaimer: Nope, still don't own anything. Not a sausage.

A/N: Ok, just to clarify, text written in '-' is them thinking, whereas text in "-" is them speaking. They are not saying stuff twice lol.

Thank you sooooooo much to all my luffly luffly reviewers, I was so pleased to receive so many reviews! Nearly fell off me chair in surprise. Anyhow, I'm glad I could make you all laugh, and thank you muchly for the kind comments. Oh and btw, I would never kill Malfoy! Maybe hurt him a bit but what can I say...I'm sadistic :)

I'm really sorry it's taken me so long to update, but I had no computer for a while, then for a while longer no inspiration :-(

Anyhow enough of my ramblings, and OWTF...

_30 seconds previously..._

Hermione bade the postman farewell, having just signed for a package addressed to her mother, and placed the small box bearing the word 'fragile' on the desk next to the telephone. With a deep breath she walked back into the kitchen, going over her plan for the day in her mind and found...Malfoy about to put a fork in the wall socket.

"Malfoy, no!" she screamed, but too late. The forks' prongs had found their target, and Hermione watched as, in slow motion it seemed, several small sparks emitted from the socket before Malfoy was pushed backwards, his hair standing on end, looking rather frazzled. Hermione rushed over to him and pulled the fork out of his grasp, gingerly placing it on the side before turning back to him, concern flooding her features.

"Are you okay?...Why...what...what were you thinking!?" she cried, searching the blonde boy's eyes for any sign of pain.

Malfoy gazed down at her, surprised by her concern. When he'd pushed the fork into the socket he had felt heat rush though his body for a second, until the heat was replaced with a shock strong enough to send him flying backwards. (A/N: please do not try this at home)

"I just wanted to see what kind of noise it made," he said

"What?" What the hell was he going on about this time?

"You said that everything you plug into a socket makes a noise. I wanted to see what noise a fork made," 'Duh.'

'Oh Merlin this is all my fault!' "I didn't mean...just promise me you'll never do something like that again!"

Malfoy nodded. "Okay."

Hermione eyed him suspiciously. "Promise?" Another nod. She figured this would be as good as she would get from him. It was only now that Hermione realised she was gripping Malfoy's arms (and that he was, obviously, still shirtless) and she blushed and released him quickly, resuming her place at the table. She indicated for him to also sit, so that she could tell him her plans.

"Okay, I figured we would travel to Diagon Alley, provided it's still there, and just try and see if anyone there knows what's going on."

"And if it's not there?"

"...then we go to King's Cross Station just to see if we can get onto Platform 9 ¾. If we can't then we come back here, and try to find out what's going on ourselves."

Malfoy nodded, then said, "Okay that sounds...wait. Does that mean if we don't find it...I have to stay here?"

Hermione stared at him coldly. He obviously hadn't changed, despite all she'd done for him, although she couldn't really have expected him to. "Yes. Unless of course you can find somewhere else. Feel free – the less I see of you the better."

"What, you think I like having to see you!?"

"Oh shut up, you stupid little ferret!" and with that Hermione stormed out of the kitchen and up the stairs.

Malfoy sat, thinking, for a bit, then sighed and followed Hermione upstairs. He stood outside her bedroom and knocked on the door.

"What?" Hermione sounded angry, so Malfoy thought he would have to do something against his nature if he wanted her to calm down.

"Listen, I'm...sorry, about just now. I didn't mean to snap at you and -"

Hermione interrupted him. "Sorry, what was that?"

Malfoy rolled his eyes and raised his voice. "I said, I'm _sorry_ for upsetting you!"

"Sorry, still can't hear you!" Now, Hermione's voice sounded calmer, and indeed it seemed to Malfoy like she was trying not to laugh.

"Sorry, okay? I'm _sorry_ for having a go at you!" he yelled though the door, now feeling rather annoyed.

Hermione opened the door giggling. "That's okay, you're forgiven." she said in between her laughter.

Malfoy scowled at her and rolled his eyes. 'God she's immature!'

Hermione finally stopped giggling and looked at Malfoy. She hated that he was taller than her; it made her feel inferior to him, which, of course, she knew she wasn't.

"So does that mean you'll come with me?"

"Yeah I s'pose. But I'll need a different shirt. Mine's covered in pink mush."

"Oh of course. I'll wash that later. You can borrow one of my dad's for now."

Malfoy wrinkled his nose in disgust and Hermione grinned mischievously.

"Well, you could always borrow one of mine?" she asked innocently. "Pink's the new black this year though!"

Malfoy's eyes widened and he quickly stepped away from Hermione, as though he expected her to grab him quickly and push him into some awful pink top.

"Er, no, that's okay!" he said quickly.

Hermione grinned and walked past him down to her parent's bedroom. Looking through her father's wardrobe, she decided a black shirt was the best option, as it seemed to be Malfoy's favourite colour. She took the shirt off its hanger, vaguely wondering why she cared if he liked the colour or not, and went to give it to Malfoy. He took it and put it on without even a thank you, so Hermione said,

"You do realise your hair is still sticking up, right?"

"What!?" Malfoy yelped and ran into the bathroom to observe the damage. Hermione listened to his pathetic whimpering and heard the tap run. He was obviously trying desperately to flatten his precious hair. She rolled her eyes and headed downstairs.

After about 10 minutes Malfoy joined her, his hair visibly damp, but no longer sticking up. He watched her as she took some money from a tin and put it in her pocket.

"What's that for?" he asked.

"Bus, train." she replied. Malfoy looked at her, still confused, so she continued, "How else are we supposed to get to London?"

A look of realisation dawned on Malfoy's face. "You mean we have to go the Muggle way?" Hermione nodded. "No thank you! I'll Apparate and meet you there,"

Hermione shrugged. "Whatever. Meet me at the Leaky Cauldron." She grabbed her jacket and made to walk out of the lounge and waited for the loud crack that signalled Malfoy's departure...but it didn't come. She turned around in surprise to look at Malfoy. He was still standing in the middle of the room, frowning.

"What's up? Why haven't you gone?" asked Hermione.

"I can't." came the reply.

"Huh?"

"I dunno, it's weird. I can't Apparate – nothing's happening."

"Okay, this is getting just plain freaky."

"You're telling me."

Hermione sighed. "I guess you'll just have to go the Muggle way."

Malfoy groaned, but followed Hermione out of the door.

A while later they were on a bus, making their way to London. It had taken a while to get on the bus, due to Malfoy not understanding the money, and refusing to hand it over.

"Just hurry up and give it to the driver!" Hermione has hissed at, smiling apologetically at said driver. Begrudgingly Malfoy had done as he had been told and followed Hermione to a seat. He had begun to complain about the lack of leg-room, but soon stopped once he realised Hermione wasn't listening.

She was still staring out of the window, obviously deep in thought, oblivious to Malfoy's discomfort. He was gripping the metal bar in front of him, his knuckled white, staring ahead and trying to ignore the bus rocking from side to side.

"Granger!" he whispered, looking at Hermione. "Granger!"

"Hmm?" Hermione turned to face Malfoy, a faraway look in her eyes.

"Are we there yet?"

Hermione raised an eyebrow. "Do we look like we're there yet?" she asked

"Well...will we be there soon?"

"In about 10 minutes, I think. And, er, why are you whispering?"

Malfoy glanced around the bus, observing the different passengers. "This...things, gives me the creeps!"

"Haven't you ever been on the Knight Bus?"

Malfoy looked at her incredulously. "No!"

Hermione shrugged and went back to looking out of the window. A couple of minutes passed in silence when suddenly Hermione slapped her knee and cried "Of course!"

Shocked by her sudden outburst, Malfoy almost threw himself off his seat. "What!?" he said, nervously glancing again at the passengers who had also looked in their direction in surprise.

Hermione turned in her seat to face Malfoy, a large grin plastered on her face. "We have been _totally_ overreacting!" she said.

"What do you mean?"

"This whole...disappearing thing! We've got it all wrong! The reason none of my stuff is in my bedroom is because it's still at Hogwarts! We're supposed to be there, so it makes sense that our stuff is there!"

Malfoy nodded. "Okay...wait, that doesn't explain why the Manor isn't where it's supposed to be."

Hermione's face fell. "Yeah...well...we can ask Professor Dumbledore about that. I'm sure _he_ knows what's happened."

Malfoy wasn't totally convinced, but decided it was best not to argue. "So...does this mean we're going to King's Cross Station?"

"Yep."

Hermione and Malfoy walked silently towards the barrier between Platforms 9 and 10. Each was trying not to think what they would do if they couldn't get through.

"Granger," said Malfoy suddenly, stopping in his tracks. Hermione also stopped and faced him, a slight frown on her face. "I've had a thought..."

"Yes?"

"Even if we can get onto Platform 9 ¾, how do we get back to Hogwarts? 'cos there won't be anyone to drive the train."

"I hadn't thought of that," said Hermione, biting her lip. "Maybe...I don't know...maybe there's an owl we can borrow to send a message to Hogwarts and they get us or...something."

She didn't sound very convinced, but strode toward the barrier quickly. Malfoy followed and they both leant on the wall, trying to look inconspicuous, but failing miserably.

"Oh no, we can't get through!" said Hermione desperately.

"Thank you for clearing that up. Without you saying that, I might never have realised." said Malfoy, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Oh shut up," said Hermione as she pushed her palms against the brick wall, trying in vain to get through. She sighed heavily and stepped away from the wall. "Well that plan was a bust," she said.

"Hey, I've had another thought," said Malfoy, frowning slightly.

"Jeez Malfoy, two in one day. Are you feeling okay?"

Malfoy glared at the smaller girl, who just gave him an innocent smile. "Ha, ha, _very_ funny. I don't think. Anyway as I was saying; I don't think our stuff is at Hogwarts,"

Now it was Hermione's turn to frown. "Why not?"

"Because I can't Apparate either. So our survey says..."

Hermione looked at him blankly.

Malfoy sighed. "We were right in saying everything magical is disappearing? First, Hogwarts starts to fall down, which, considering how old it is isn't all that surprising, but why now? And why did that corridor suddenly become never-ending? And how did we end up in a house miles from Hogwarts? A Mud...er, Muggle house at that. Secondly a manor belonging to one of the most wizarding families disappears, thirdly, Apparating becomes impossible, and lastly, we can't get onto the Platform which should in theory take us to our school. Think about it; everything, and I mean _everything_ magical is being wiped from the world."

Following his long speech, Malfoy looked expectantly at Hermione, who suddenly looked very pale and worried, and slowly leant onto the wall and slid down until she was sitting with her legs drawn up to her chest.

"What?" he asked her.

"Does that mean...that we'll just...disappear?"

'Huh?' "Why would we disappear?"

"Because we're magical..."

"Oh." 'What do you say to something like that?' "Um...well, you should be safe 'cos you're also Muggle. I don't think you'll disappear, at least." 'What the...? Am I being reassuring? And to Granger no less!'

Hermione gave him a small smile, but it quickly faded from her face. "But...I don't want to be left on my own," she said

Malfoy raised his eyebrows. "You want me to stay?"

There was a pause before Hermione sneered, "Don't flatter yourself Malfoy. I said that I didn't want to be alone, not that I wanted you to stay with me!"

Malfoy scowled down at her and strode quickly toward the exit of the station. Hermione quickly scrambled to her feet and jogged to catch up with him.

"Where are you going?" No reply. "Malfoy! Stop! Wait for me! Oh for goodness sake _will_ you slow down!?"

She grabbed his arm but he shrugged her off angrily.

"Wait for -"

When she didn't finish her sentence, Malfoy looked around at Hermione in surprise. She had stopped following him and was staring to the right, a shocked and slightly bemused expression on her face. Without saying anything, she suddenly set off at a run, dodging around smart-looking business people, children, and station masters, ignoring cries of, "Watch it!" and "Oi! No running!"

"What...GRANGER!" Malfoy ran after Hermione, not bothering to be careful as he dodged everyone, and sending books, suitcases and briefcases flying.

"Granger what are you...stop!" Now it was Malfoy's turn to shout out in vain. "Granger what is it!?"

He finally caught up with her and grabbed her arm, spinning her around so she was now facing him. She was flushed and out of breath, and looked at Malfoy as if only just remembering he was with her.

"Oh, Malfoy. I forgot about you. Sorry." She said, as she turned around to start running again. But Malfoy was too quick for her, and grabbed her arm again. She turned and glared at him in exasperation.

"Wait, why are you running? Where are you going?" he asked

"Because...I just saw somebody we know. Somebody we _really_ have to talk to!"

"Who?"

"Harry!"

Ooooh talk about a cliffie and a half! Bwah haha

Big thanks to my mate Becky for the information on what it feels like to electrocute oneself (no she wasn't as dim as Malfoy, but still...) ;)

Hopefully the next update will be soon. I know what I wanna write; it's just a case of getting it onto paper


	5. Chapter 5

Now You See It, Now You Don't – Chapter Five

Disclaimer: _Still the answer is no. Also, I do not own either Bacardi breezers or Fire Whiskey. You see, if I did, I would be too smashed to be posting this chapter ;)_

_Okay another chapter. This was kinda fun to write, but not as much as the third chappie!!_

_Oh yeah and it seems to me that 'Mione and Malfoy are getting a bit OOC, so I apologise for that. Also, I decided it was incredibly harsh calling Draco 'Malfoy' all the time, so I switched to calling him Draco as of this chapter._

_Again, many thanks to all the reviewers; I'm glad you are enjoying my story. Please continue to enjoy ;-)_

Draco stared at Hermione. "Potter?" he asked. "Potter's here?"

"Yes!" Hermione's eyes were shining and she beamed at Draco.

Draco, however, looked far from impressed. "And we need to talk to him because...?"

"Because he might know what's going on!" Draco snorted and shook his head in disbelief. Hermione glared at him. "Oh shut up Malfoy. He's not stupid you know!"

"I find that very hard to believe."

"You're so...urgh! I'm going to find Harry!" Hermione turned away from Draco and again ran off in the direction of the black-haired boy.

Draco sighed and, scowling slightly, followed Hermione. He didn't particularly want to talk to Potter, but curiosity got the better of him, and he wanted to find out if the Gryffindor did know anything or not.

"Probably not," he mused.

Hermione finally caught sight of him and called out.

"Harry! Harry! Wait a minute!"

But the young man continued walking, oblivious to Hermione's cries. Unfazed, Hermione simply put on an extra burst of speed. She finally caught up with him, and grabbed his arm.

"God, have you gone deaf or something?" she exclaimed as she gasped for breath.

The black-haired boy turned around in surprise and glanced down at the girl clamped onto his arm.

"I beg your pardon?" he asked politely, trying to shake Hermione's arm off.

"I said, have you gone...Harry dear, take of those ridiculous glasses, they make you look like a bug!"

The young man obediently reached up and removed the sunglasses, and Hermione gasped, blushed scarlet, and stepped away from him.

"Oh, my god, I am _so_ sorry!" she said quickly, a hand flying up to her mouth.

The man she was facing was most definitely not Harry. Chocolate brown eyes looked down into hers, and his forehead was scar-free. He smiled at Hermione.

"That's okay; I think I can forgive you."

At that moment Draco appeared at Hermione's side. He glanced at the man standing in front of Hermione, but did not acknowledge him. "Granger." He looked around. "Where'd Potter go?"

Hermione blushed a violent red and looked down, kicking a loose stone on the ground. "Um, it wasn't Harry," she mumbled.

Draco looked confused. "What?"

Hermione sighed. "I was...mistaken. I thought this man was Harry." She indicated the stranger.

Only now did Draco allow himself to look at the man properly.

The stranger grinned at him. "I'm James," he said, offering his hand. Hermione made a squeaking noise, which she attempted to turn into a cough. Draco raised an eyebrow at her and ignored James' hand, so he quickly dropped it to his side.

"Okay, so...it was...nice meeting you." James said, looking at Hermione. He nodded at Draco, then turned to walk away. He'd gone two steps when he suddenly stopped and turned back.

"Am I safe to wear these?" he asked Hermione, holding up his sunglasses. "Or will I look too 'bug-like'?"

Hermione cringed and the blush returned to her cheeks. James laughed and said 'bye', then turned and walked away.

Hermione and Draco stood in silence for a minute, before Draco said,

"You told him he looked like a bug!?"

Half an hour later the two of them were sitting on the London Underground, pointedly ignoring each other. After hurriedly escaping King's Cross Station and the possibility of running into James again, Hermione had blamed Draco for not keeping up with her and stopping her from embarrassing herself, to which Draco (fairly) replied that he wouldn't have been able to stop her even if he had been with her, and that it wasn't his fault she had left two old biddies trying to pick up their newspapers having run past them and sent them flying, leaving Draco to help. Not that he'd wanted to, he quickly added, but one of them had grabbed his arm and demanded he do it. Quickly getting into his stride of defending himself, he also pointed out that she was fully capable of embarrassing herself regardless, which she succeeded in doing when she squeaked at James' name.

"_Yes, well, there is a good reason for that!" Hermione had retorted, her cheeks rosy red again._

"_Which is?"_

"_If you can't work it out for yourself than I shan't tell you!"_

Following this short conversation, Draco had muttered something about "irritating know-it-alls" and sat himself a few seats behind Hermione, while she sat glaring down at her hands.

Finally they arrived at their destination, and Hermione quickly jumped up and hurried off the train and up the steps onto the busy London street, not bothering to wait for Draco.

The blonde boy pushed himself off of his seat reluctantly and followed Hermione, remaining a few paces behind her. He was still mad at her for blaming him, but still did not want to be left behind.

Hermione, on the other hand, had calmed down considerably, and was truly sorry for blaming Draco, but did not particularly want to apologise to him just yet. She hurried down the street, desperately trying to dodge shoppers.

The two of them passed clothes shops, stationary shops, all sorts of shops, without taking a single sideways glance, intent on finding the Leaky Cauldron a.s.a.p.

Suddenly Hermione stopped, causing Draco to nearly walk right into her.

"Why have you stopped?" he asked

"Hermione turned to face him, a confused look on her face. "It should be here," she said, chewing on her bottom lip.

"What should?"

"The Leaky Cauldron. I remember it being a little bit further down than that clothes shop." She pointed at a clothes shop to their right. Draco followed with his eyes in the direction she was pointing, glanced at the clothes shop, then slowly looked at the rest of the shops. There was a café, a tiny bookshop, another clothes shop, another bookshop, and information office...but no pub. He frowned.

"Let's go closer," he said, pushing past people so that he was outside the second bookshop. He frowned at the shop and once again looked either side of it, searching for a small dark pub. Hermione came and stood next to him, looking down the street to see if she was mistaken about the pub's whereabouts. But no, she still couldn't see it at first glance.

Not wanting to give up, she continued wandering down the street, staring hard at each shop as she passed them. Draco watched her stop just past an empty shop, and called after her.

"It's not here Granger, we might as well leave!"

"No not yet, it might still be here. Hey, come here a minute, look at this,"

Draco sighed and strolled over to where Hermione was standing, muttering something about "nosy Gryffindors", which Hermione chose to ignore.

"What?" he asked flatly.

"This is it," said Hermione, a small trace of uncertainty in her voice.

Draco looked up at the dark, abandoned shop, an eyebrow raised. "There's nothing here."

"Exactly. It's supposed to sort of...become the pub, when you take notice of it,"

"Then why hasn't it?"

"I...don't know,"

"That's useful."

Hermione shot Draco an irritated sideways glance. "Well, what do we do now?"

Draco pulled a face. "I don't know."

Hermione sighed. "Well, it hasn't become a pub on the outside, but maybe it is on the inside? We need to take a look."

"And we're supposed to do that how exactly? The windows are all boarded up."

"I don't know! But we can't just give up, we have to try!"

Draco rolled his eyes. "Okay, fine. Look, there's a little passage way there. I'll go round the back and try to find a way in. if I find something I'll come and get you, but in the meantime you wait here. And try to look...inconspicuous."

With that, Draco disappeared down the alley, leaving Hermione standing alone. Deciding it would be a good idea to follow Draco's advice; she casually wandered to the next shop and sat down next to it, trying not to look at everybody who went past.

She had barely gotten comfortable when a fat man approached her and dropped a 50 pence piece in front of her.

"Go get yourself a coffee," he said kindly, before hurrying off.

Hermione, thoroughly enraged, glared after him. A few seconds later, Draco reappeared at her side, dusting his hands together. "There's no way in...what's wrong?"

Hermione stood up, grabbing the 50 pence. She turned to Draco, who raised an eyebrow at her expression. "What?"

"Some really _fat_ man just came up and gave me 50p for a coffee!" she raged. "50p isn't even enough to _get_ a coffee!"

"Um...okay. What's the big deal?"

"What's the big deal!? He thought I was homeless!" suddenly Hermione looked down at her clothes, then back up at Draco, looking panic-stricken. "I don't look _that_ bad...do I?"

"No...you look...fine," 'Considering you're a Mudblood.'

Hermione sighed. "I hate London,"

"Yeah, well...nobody cares."

Hermione frowned at Draco. "What's eating you?"

"Huh?"

"It's just a saying. Like...what the hell is your problem!?"

Draco sighed heavily. "Nothing, it's just...this whole thing is so stupid! I want to know what's going on!"

"So do I, but I'm not biting your head off!"

"Well, you're a Gryffindor. You don't do that."

"That's really, really...house-ist!"

"What!? House-ist? You just made that up!"

Hermione looked away. "I couldn't think of the right word," she admitted.

Draco laughed. "Well I never, Hermione Granger couldn't think of the correct terminology. Tsk tsk!"

"I wonder if there is a correct term for what I wanted..." Hermione mused, earning a groan from Draco.

"It really doesn't matter!" he said. "We can just go back to your house and find out what has happened. That okay?"

"Yeah I guess," Hermione sighed and ran a hand through her hair. I don't see how we can hope to find out. I don't have any books that might help, and apparently there's no magic anywhere."

"Not everything needs to be solved by books you know. Come on Granger, we're the smartest pupils in our year. I'm sure we can find a solution."

"Hmm...I guess. Okay then, let's go." Hermione walked back toward the Underground, Draco walking next to her.

"It's good that you're so modest," said Hermione suddenly.

"What do you mean?"

"'We're the smartest' blahblahblah!" she mimicked.

Draco shrugged. "Yeah well, I'm a Slytherin, I'm allowed to be...oh wait, I mustn't say things like that, it's _house_-ist!"

Hermione laughed and rolled her eyes. "Oh shut up!"

The journey back to Hermione's house in the quiet street of Willow View was uneventful. Neither Hermione nor Draco could think of anything to say, so they spent both the journey on the Underground and on the bus in silence.

When they finally got back, it was gone 6 o'clock.

"I can't be bothered to cook anything," Hermione announced. "Do you eat pizza?"

"I...think so. Probably." Was Draco's reply.

So Hermione ordered a pizza, and the two of them sat in the living room to eat it. Once she had finished, Hermione got up and went into the kitchen. When she came back, she was clutching two bottles. She handed one to Draco, who looked at it curiously.

"What's this?" he asked.

"Watermelon Barcadi Breezer. It's alcohol, very tasty." Replied Hermione as she opened both bottles. "I think we need it, after the day we've had." She sipped hers, whilst Draco looked at the colour of the liquid doubtfully. He sniffed it.

"Urgh, it's poison! Why are you trying to poison me!?" he exclaimed.

Hermione laughed at his expression. "It tastes better than it smells. Trust me. Go on, try it!"

Draco raised his eyebrows, still not convinced that Hermione wasn't trying to poison him, but then shrugged and took a mouthful. The doubtful look on his face changed into one of surprise and he grinned.

"You're right!" he said. "This is really nice!" He then proceeded to gulp down half the bottle.

"Steady on Malfoy, not so fast! This has the same effect as Fire Whiskey!"

"I don't care!" replied Draco, as he downed the rest of the bottle.

Hermione shook her head and gulped down more of her own drink. "Luckily I have plenty of those then, huh?"

An hour and many bottles of Bacardi breezers later, both Hermione and Draco were sprawled on the floor, giggling uncontrollably at nothing in particular.

"Why is the...room spinning?" slurred Draco. "Turn off the blender!" he exclaimed, then suddenly hiccupped.

"Do you even know what a blender is?"

"Nup," replied Draco, after considering his answer for a full two minutes.

Hermione sat up slowly, clutching her side because she was laughing so much.

"You're such a ssssily..." she giggled.

"A silly what?"

Hermione thought about this, her forehead creased in concentration. "You're a silly peanut!" she yelled, before laughing once more.

Draco, also laughing, joined Hermione leaning on the sofa.

"You're...pretty when you laugh," he informed her.

Hermione, however, seemed unable to stop her giggling.

Draco pouted at her. "Stop laughing!" he commanded.

Hermione snorted with laughter and poked his bottom lip where it stuck out. "Pouty lip, pouty lip!" she chanted.

Draco playfully bit her finger then sighed. "Man we are so wasted."

"Nah...want one more?"

"I want you,"

"Huh?"

"I want...ah, sod it" Draco leant forward and gently kissed Hermione's lips.

_OOH ARR! What will happen next!?!?_


	6. Chapter 6

Now You See It, Now You Don't – Chapter Six

_I'm so sorry I've taken soooo long to update! hides I kinda…lost interest plus inspiration, plus have been quite busy. But the plot bunnies have returned so I thought I'd carry on…hope ya'll still like it :)_

_Thanks again for all the kind reviews! Oh and… yes there are consequences to excessive drinking, so don't do it! I certainly don't condone such behaviour shifty eyes :D_

-------

Hermione's eyes fluttered shut as Draco's soft lips caressed her own and she sighed. Wait…Draco? She felt his wet tongue push at her closed lips silently asking entrance to her mouth and her eyes flew open in shock. She pulled away from him and scrambled backwards.

"W-what…" Her eyes darted around the room, unwilling to look at Draco. She cleared her throat, suddenly feeling a lot more sober. "Why did you…?" She waved her arm in a helpless gesture.

Draco shrugged; apparently the kiss had not sobered him up any. He leant his head against the sofa and turned to look at Hermione, grinning. "Why not?" He shuffled forward as though to kiss her again and she quickly stumbled to her feet. He sighed and pouted, his arms crossed across his chest. "Oh come on! Stop being such a prude!"

Hermione frowned at him. "Just because I don't want to kiss you doesn't make me a prude." She said carefully, before turning and leaving the room.

Draco listened to her going up the stairs and sighed again. He spotted a bottle with some green liquid still in it and crawled towards it, emptying its contents down his throat before passing out on the floor.

------------

The following morning Hermione awoke to find bright sunlight streaming in through the open curtains. She winced and lifted a hand to shade her eyes. _'God…I shouldn't have drunk so much last night…'_ she thought as her head pounded. _'Last night…'_ She sat bolt upright, ignoring the pain_. 'Oh my god Malfoy KISSED me!'_ She touched her lips, remembering the feeling of his own against hers and fought to keep the small smile from gracing her features. She shook her head lightly_. 'Forget about it, you were both drunk, it didn't mean anything'_

She convinced herself to get up and wandered into the bathroom to have a quick shower and clean her teeth: the idea of food made her stomach roll. Once she was dressed she went downstairs and quickly found the bottle of aspirin, swallowing two and hoping they kicked into action soon.

She looked around, suddenly realising that she had forgotten about her 'guest'. She wondered if he was still in bed and decided to go and check, but as she walked past the lounge she noticed a figure slumped on the floor.

She looked around at all the empty bottles and her eyes widened. "Goodness, we really did drink a lot…" she murmured. Turning her attention to the blonde boy she walked closer to him. "Malfoy," she called his name and inclined her head to see if he reacted at all. "Malfoy!" she tried again, but still he didn't move.

She rolled her eyes and tapped his side with her foot. Still no response. She kicked him harder and bit her lip when he was pushed slightly to the side_. 'Oops…maybe that was a bit too hard,'_ She sighed and crouched down beside him, rolling him over so he was on his back. She bit back a laugh when she saw he was drooling and shook his shoulder. "Malfoy! Wake up!"

He moaned and squeezed his eyes shut. "G'off," He batted at her hand and attempted to roll over again, not wanting to be woken up.

"Oh no you don't! Get. Up!" She shook him again and he opened his eyes slightly, looking up at her bleary-eyed.

"Ps-ff." Clearly coherency wasn't a trait Malfoy could admit to owning first thing in the morning, following heavy drinking.

He flung his arm across his eyes and sighed deeply.

Hermione poked his shoulder one last time before standing up. "Fine. But just so you know…you're drooling." He lifted his arm away from his face to give her what he obviously thought was an incredulous look and she smirked, nodding at the corner of his mouth. He wiped at his face, looking shocked and then embarrassed when he realised she had been right.

He wiped his hand on his jeans and tried to sit up. "Owww…fuck!" He groaned and cradled his head in his hands. "What did you do to me?" He swallowed, pulling a face at the nasty taste in his mouth, ignoring Hermione's chuckle.

"I didn't do anything, you're the one that drunk yourself silly and then came onto me!" Hermione clapped her hand to her mouth as Draco's head shot up, his unfocused eyes wide. _'Oh god…I didn't mean to say that!'_

"What are you talking about?"

Hermione blushed and looked away. "Nothing. C'mon, I'll get you something for your headache" She hurried back into the kitchen, leaving Draco to struggle to his feet and unsteadily follow her. He wobbled from side to side, using the walls to steady himself, then collapsed in a chair by the table and laid his head on the wood.

Hermione looked at him pityingly and placed a glass of water and two aspirin in front of him. "You know-"

"Save it," Draco interrupted, quickly swallowing the tablets and downing the glass of water before resting his head on the table again.

Hermione bit her lip and smiled. He actually looked quite cute, his blonde hair mussed and…NO! This was Malfoy she was thinking about! She mentally berated herself and in doing so missed the fact that Draco was now half sat up, his elbow on the table and head resting on his hand as he stared at her.

"What did you say about coming onto me?"

Hermione's head snapped up and she gasped upon realising Draco was staring at her. "Erm…" _'My, what a fascinating mark on the table…' _"Actually it was the other way around. You kissed me," She chanced a look up at the Slytherin and noticed he was wearing a small smile, looking almost pitying.

"Ah Granger, just because you want me doesn't mean you have to make stuff up, you know,"

Hermione's eyes flashed. "What?"

Draco simply smiled wider. "I kissed you? Oh please." He made a show of rolling his eyes and carefully pushed himself to his feet. "Now if you don't mind, there's a bed upstairs with my name on it."

Hermione watched him stumble from the kitchen trying to control her anger. She couldn't believe he had in effect called her a liar! And to think, just minutes ago she had been thinking that he was…no she wasn't. There was no way she was thinking that about Draco Malfoy. She smirked and rose to stand in the kitchen doorway, leaning against the wooden frame. She watched Draco cling to the banister as he attempted to climb the stairs.

"You sure you don't want something to eat? Bacon and eggs, perhaps?" Her smirk widened as Draco flashed her a look of pure horror and turned an impressive shade of green before launching himself up the stairs and into the bathroom.

Hermione laughed and set herself the task of clearing up the front room. As she tidied everything to her liking, a photograph of her family caught her eye and she froze. What with all the drama of somehow being transported home and the seeming disappearance of all things magical, the whereabouts of her parents hadn't even crossed her mind. But now she found herself wondering where on earth they were.

She collapsed in an armchair to think. She had been home for two nights already, and she only now realised that it was a weekday and so her parents should have been working as per usual, and come home in the evenings. She chewed on her bottom lip nervously, wondering what could have happened to them. The logical, rational side of her thought that perhaps they had gone on a break for a few days, but the other side of her was already thinking of various horrifying causes for their disappearance.

She jumped up and began searching the house for any sign that could explain where her parents were. 35 minutes of searching wielded nothing and she was on the verge of hysterics as she flew upstairs into the spare bedroom and into an unsuspecting Draco Malfoy's arms.

Draco sat bolt upright and looked down at the sobbing girl in surprise. "Granger…what the hell?"

"They're g-gone!"

Draco frowned and massaged his temples. Thankfully the aspirin, along with an extra hour of sleep, had eased his aching head. "Who's gone?"

"My p-parents!" Hermione wailed.

Draco rolled his eyes at her dramatics and tried to push Hermione off of him so he could stand up. He only succeeded for a moment, though, before Hermione launched against his chest again, causing him to fall back against the wall. "Ow! Merlin, Granger, get off!" he sighed angrily when she simply clung to him even more. "Right, that's it. Get off me, or I will curse you into the middle of next week!"

Hermione looked up at him and seemed to suddenly realise from whom she was seeking comfort. She pushed herself away from him and wiped her eyes, sniffling. "You couldn't even if you wanted to, you don't have your wand."

Draco realised she was right and he rolled his eyes. "Well, the threat worked, didn't it? I'm not the only one that forgot that fact. Now, let's be logical for a moment and think where your parents might have gone."

Hermione watched in shock as he appeared to be thinking. He was actually going to help her?

"Have you checked for brochures, or notes for a housekeeper?"

Now it was Hermione's turn to roll her eyes. "We don't have a housekeep, Malfoy."

Draco arched an eyebrow but said nothing. "Have you looked in their bedroom?"

Hermione shook her head slowly then hurried into her parents' room. She looked around and focused on her mother's dressing table. As her gaze swept across the various bits of paper kept on it, she noticed a letter. She picked it up and quickly read it, then laughed at her own dramatics.

Draco, who had been watching her from the doorway, gave her an odd look. "What?"

"They're visiting my aunt! She wrote to them last week and asked that they go and visit her for a few days!"

Draco smirked. "See! And you probably thought they'd disappeared along with everything else magical…fat chance, what with them being Muggles and all!"

Hermione ignored his ramblings, too caught up in feelings of relief that her parents were okay to feel annoyed with him.

"Oh…Granger? Are you going to wash my shirt for me?"

"What? Oh yeah!" Hermione caught the shirt which Draco threw at her then gathered up the rest of the washing. Draco followed her downstairs and sat at the table watching as she piled it into yet another big machine (this one had a dark hole in it, in which Hermione was pushing the clothes…perhaps she had house elves kept in there who were taking the clothes to wash and dry? And he thought that she was all for improving the lives of the creatures! Draco rolled his eyes and 'tsk-ed' softly).

Hermione closed the door to the washing machine and added the powder and conditioner, turning the dial then leaving it to run its cycle. She laughed at Malfoy as she walked out of the kitchen, knowing the machine would probably keep his attention for the full hour and a half it ran.

Draco's eyes widened as the machine made a gurgling noise and seemed to fill with water. He jumped to his feet and began to shout for Hermione thinking something was wrong, but found his curiosity got the better of him. He approached the gurgling machine cautiously and lowered to his knees in front of it. He jumped when the clothes suddenly began to spin through the window and sat back, his head making small circles as he followed the path of a red sock until he realised it was making him dizzy. He blinked several times then leant back on his palms, watching in silent awe.

Around 2 hours later

Hermione pulled the now clean washing out of the washing machine and looked at it in horror. Everything had a slight pink tinge to it. "Oh noo!" she whined, glaring when she noticed the red sock. "Dammit!"

Draco looked over her shoulder and sneered. "Nice one Granger. How am I meant to wear that shirt now?"

_-----_

_Eh…what can I say? He shouldn't have consumed so much alcohol manic laughter_

_Yeah…a lot of this was written late at night/early hours of morning so if it doesn't make sense or anything, I apologise._

_Hopefully I will update again soon! Laters_


	7. Chapter 7

Now You See It, Now You Don't – Chapter Seven

Several days had passed with both Hermione and Draco simply sitting around the house feeling bored and, although neither would admit it to the other, extremely worried about what they should do. A few times Hermione had suggested they go out for a walk, anything to get out of the house, but a dirty look from Draco had quickly changed her mind.

The one day they had attempted to go out had almost ended in blood shed. Upon realising that Draco had no clothes save for his jeans and now pink shirt, Hermione had agreed to buy him some stuff, quickly becoming annoyed with his expensive tastes and snooty manner. Lets just say neither one of them were in any hurry to repeat that experience.

Hermione was sitting in the lounge, gazing at the TV but not really seeing what was on. She found she liked the background noise but wasn't interested in day time TV: instead, she used the time to think of ways to try and sort out what had happened.

She heard Draco thump down the stairs but paid him no attention. He'd spent the last three days in his room, only coming out for meals or to get a drink, and even then he barely said two words to her.

She heard a gasp and turned, seeing Draco standing in the doorway looking at the TV in shock.

"What is that?" he whispered

"It's a television"

Draco tore his gaze away from the TV and looked at Hermione, frowning. "A what?"

"Television. It…" Hermione hesitated. She'd never realised just how difficult Muggle things were to understand or explain. "It plays…pictures which…tell a story. This is the news," she gestured at the screen. "So it'll tell you about what's going on in the local area."

Draco walked into the lounge and sat on the sofa, looking at the TV in amazement. "Is it…telling the future?"

Hermione laughed. "What? No! It's just reporting on stuff that's happened"

Draco nodded and continued to watch the TV. "Hey, Granger, it's your favourite place!" He smirked and pointed at the screen.

"Hogwarts?" Hermione whipped around to face the TV.

"No…a library. Merlin, it's _tiny_!" Draco snorted as a shot of the inside of the library filled the screen. "Our library at the Manor is bigger than that!"

Hermione ignored him, a million thoughts whizzing through her mind. "Of course…" she breathed.

Draco turned to face her, looking confused. "How would you know, you haven't seen my library!"

Hermione blinked. "What? No…the library! We have to go there!" She jumped up and ran to get her shoes and jacket. Draco watched her rush out of the room and shook his head.

"C'mon!" Hermione rushed back into the room and looked at Draco expectantly.

"And why, _exactly_, do we have to go the library?"

"_Because_, it might have the answers about what's going on! I can't believe I didn't think of it before…"

"Granger…it's a Muggle library…there aren't going to be any books on magic"

Hermione sighed impatiently. "Actually, the one of the librarians is a _wizard_, I found out two summers ago! He has a whole section of the library dedicated to magic. It's really good, there're all sorts of -"

"Wait, there's a wizard working in a _Muggle_ library?" Draco interrupted.

"_Yes_, now come _on_! He might be able to help us!"

She ran out of the room again and Draco sighed. "12 Galleons says this is going to backfire" he muttered as he followed her.

&&&

Hermione walked into the library foyer, looking around expectantly. She bit her lip, not sure where to start looking for Mr. Wright, the librarian, then set off for the 'History' section, knowing he usually worked in that area.

Draco looked around with a slight sneer, wishing he were anywhere else. "Granger!" he called out after her.

"Shh!" Hermione spun round to face him before looking around to make sure he hadn't disrupted anyone.

Draco rolled his eyes. "We're still in the foyer, Granger"

"But it's still a _library_!" Hermione took a few steps towards him, whispering fiercely. "Now, I'm going to look for Mr. Wright, you just…try and blend." With that she hurried off, leaving Draco looking sulky and muttering about not being a chameleon.

Hermione peered down the first 'History' aisle, hoping she would be able to find Mr. Wright soon. Having no luck, however, she frowned, placing her hands on her hips. She wouldn't have thought he would have changed sections he worked in, knowing that the magic section was cleverly hidden behind the History shelves but accessible only to the old wizard.

Thinking that perhaps he was on a break, she decided to go and ask at the main desk if anyone had seen him.

"Hello again!"

Hermione turned at the sound of the man's voice and found herself, for the second time that week, face-to-face with the mysterious James.

"Oh!...Hello…um," Hermione stuttered, surprised at seeing him again.

James grinned cheekily at her. "It's a small world, eh?" Hermione smiled and nodded, "So, looking for anything in particular? If it's the 'History of the English Language' I'm afraid I've already taken it out," he waved the large book at her.

Hermione laughed. "Actually I'm not here for a book,"

James gave her an odd look. "But it's a library"

"I'm looking for someone who works here," Hermione quickly explained. "Mr. Wright"

"Ah." James suddenly looked serious. "Well…you won't have much luck, he seems to have…er, disappeared."

"What?" Hermione looked at him in shock.

"Yeah…he hasn't been seen for several days now; it's been all over the news and everything. No-one's heard from him."

"Oh no…" The realisation that Mr. Wright was a wizard suddenly hit Hermione and she remembered that the whole problem was that all the signs of the wizarding world were disappearing.

"Are you okay?" James looked down at her, concerned. "Did you know him?"

"Yeah…sort of. I…I'm sorry, I have to go." She turned and walked away quickly.

"Don't give up hope," James called out after her. "Hope is a very _fragile_ feeling,"

Hermione frowned and turned to look at James in confusion. She gasped: he'd disappeared. She blinked and looked around, mouth open in a surprised 'o'.

"Granger? Any luck?" Draco approached her and stared at her dumbstruck expression. "Granger?" He snapped his fingers in front of her face and she jumped. "What happened?"

"James was here," Hermione said, looking around for him again.

"The Potter look-a-like?"

"Yeah…he said…something weird; it sounded almost like he knew about…you know,"

Draco arched an eyebrow and looked at her sceptically. "How?"

Hermione quickly explained her conversation with James.

"Sounds to me," Draco said slowly. "Like this James guy is just some weirdo. I don't think we should talk to him if we see him again."

Hermione scowled, she had expected Draco to immediately recognise James' subtle hint. "But what about the 'hope is a fragile feeling'? What does that _mean_!"

"I don't know!" Draco exclaimed. "That's the point. It doesn't make any sense, James is crazy, we should just forget we ever met him!" Hermione opened her mouth to say something but Draco quickly added, "The end! It doesn't mean _anything_!"

"Well _I_ think it does! It's too random to be just…random!"

"Argh!" Draco threw his hands up in frustration. "No. It. Doesn't!" He placed emphasis on each word, trying to make Hermione understand. "Now, I'm going back to your house and waiting there!" He spun on his heel and stormed out of the library.

"Wait for what, exactly?" Hermione asked, hurrying after him. "Someone else to sort out this problem? That's so Slytherin!" Draco rolled his eyes but Hermione ignored him, continuing her rant. "Well guess what, there _is_ no-one to help! It's down to us!"

Draco continued down the street, pushing open Hermione's front gate and waiting for her to unlock the front door.

"I think James meant something when he told me that. And don't you think it's just a _bit_ too suspicious that he looks so much like Harry, has the same name as Harry's father, then suddenly disappears after giving me a hint?"

"No." Draco said simply. "It wasn't even a hint. You're just so desperate for an answer you're making connections that don't lead to anything!"

"At least I'm _trying_!" Hermione said shrilly, her cheeks tinged pink. "I haven't just given up, like you!"

Draco narrowed his eyes and glared at her. "I haven't _'given up'_! You think I like staying here? I want Hogwarts back just as much as you, but _I'm_ being realistic!" He sneered at her. "Typical Gryffindor, rushing in at the first possibility of a clue. Too bad it won't work, like I said before, you're just fishing for clues."

Hermione glared back at him, ignoring the tears welling in her eyes. She took a deep breath and willed herself to calm down a little: screaming at Draco was not going to help. "I'm not rushing in, I'm simply trying to find a way to get us back to the real world. If it doesn't work, then fine, we look somewhere else. But at least we'll have _tried_!"

Draco rolled his eyes. "I'm telling you it's not going to work! It's a waste of time and you know it!"

Hermione screamed in annoyance, her nostrils flaring in anger. "You are so irritating! How can you be so sure that it won't work?"

Draco clenched his fists by his sides. "Look," he began, in a low, dangerous voice.

They were both startled when the front door suddenly opened and Draco leapt away from it in shock. Hermione looked at the person in the doorway with wide eyes.

"Dad? What are you doing back?"

&&&

_Well here it is, the next update. A little later than I had hoped to post it but it seems I was busier than I had planned on being lol. Anyhow, hope you like!_


	8. Chapter 8

Now You See It, Now You Don't – Chapter Eight

_A/N: Still don't own any of it. I can't remember if there was ever any mention of Hermione's parents' names so I just made them up :D Oh yeah, -laughs- , there are a lot of meaningful looks shared in this chapter, which gets rather repetitive but I thought they were necessary -shrugs-_

_&&&_

Paul Granger frowned slightly from the doorstep. "I think the more appropriate question is what are _you_ doing back?" He said, not sounding angry, but Hermione still winced as though she'd done something wrong.

She exchanged a look with Draco, who just raised his eyebrows at her.

"I think this is a conversation best for indoors," Mr Granger said, standing aside to allow the teenagers in.

"Paul, who was it?" Hermione's mother's voice called from the kitchen.

"It was Hermione and a friend," Paul called back. He turned back to his daughter as he ushered them into the lounge. "We could hear you two arguing from the kitchen! Lover's tiff?" He chuckled as Hermione blushed.

Draco snorted at his comment and sat on the sofa, his back straight and hands clenched in his lap showing his discomfort.

"Hermione?" Anne Granger appeared in the doorway looking confused. "Hello, darling! This is a surprise!" She smiled and hugged her daughter. She suddenly frowned and released her. "Hermione, why _are_ you home? Shouldn't you be at school?"

Hermione glanced at Draco again, wondering how her parents would react to what she was about to tell them. Mrs Granger saw them share an almost nervous look and glanced at her husband who was watching them all in apprehension.

"You're not in trouble are you, Hermione?" Mr Granger asked, his eyes flicking to Draco's for a split second before returning to Hermione.

"Oh, you haven't been expelled?" Mrs Granger wailed, her eyes wide.

"WHAT? I…no!" Hermione spluttered. Draco watched her, amused.

She took a deep breath and gestured to the two armchairs. "I haven't been expelled, but you might want to sit down for this." She herself sat next to Draco and looked at her parents expectantly.

Both adults raised their eyebrows at each other before sitting down. Mr Granger once again eyed Draco curiously but said nothing, waiting for Hermione's explanation.

"Er…" Hermione suddenly wasn't sure where to start. Should she give the details of what happened before her and Draco appeared here? "Okay…well, the reason I'm not at school is…school isn't there."

She saw her parents exchange yet another look and hastened to explain. "I mean, it _was_ there, but it seems to have…disappeared."

"Hermione, are you feeling okay? You don't feel ill at all? Perhaps feverish?"

Hermione paused, confused. "No," she said slowly. "Why would I?"

"Your father and I drove by your school. I can assure you it is still there."

Hermione frowned and gave her mother an odd look. "You…drove past it?"

Mrs Granger nodded, still looking at her daughter in concern.

"But I thought you were going to Aunt Sue's?"

"We did,"

Hermione groaned, closing her eyes and massaging her temples. "But Aunt Sue lives in Kent!"

"We know, dear -"

"How can you have driven past Hogwarts then? It's in Scotland!"

"Hogwarts?" Her mother exclaimed. "What's that?"

Hermione blinked at her mother in disbelief. "Wh-what do you mean, 'what's Hogwarts'?" she stammered.

"Hermione, what is this all about?" Her father finally spoke, leaning forwards and resting his elbows on his knees. "We come home to find you here when you should be at school, you bring a," he paused and looked at Draco briefly. "a friend with you, then you start talking about your school having disappeared. Are you sure you're feeling okay?"

Hermione, still confused by her parents' ignorance of Hogwarts, nodded, barely registering the question she had just been asked.

"But then why are you here? Don't get us wrong, it's not that we're not pleased to see you," Draco rolled his eyes; trust Muggle parents to be overly-sappy. "It's just…if you're not ill, and you haven't been expelled or gotten into any kind of trouble, why have you come home already?"

"I told you-!" Hermione began, snapping out of her bewildered stupor.

"No Hermione, you started talking about your school disappearing, when it quite obviously hasn't! What's going on Hermione, it's not like you to lie." Mr Granger's voice had risen and Draco could tell he was starting to get angry. He sat up a bit straighter; this could be about to get interesting!

"Wh…I'm not lying! Hogwarts really has disappeared, and so has-"

"What is Hogwarts?" Mrs Granger exclaimed exasperatedly. "We've never heard of it!"

"You must have!" Hermione cried. She was beginning to sound hysterical and she could feel the tears welling in her eyes. This was most definitely not going the way she had planned. "It's my school! I've been there for five years!"

Mrs Granger looked at her husband with a mixed expression of confusion and frustration. Mr Granger cleared his throat and decided to change tactics. Clearly they were not getting very far, and he wanted this cleared up. He decided to finally find out who the mysterious boy was that his only daughter had been arguing with on the doorstep.

"Well…are you going to introduce us to this charming young man?" He spoke lightly, hoping Hermione wouldn't notice the poor attempt at changing the subject for the time being.

"Oh," Hermione looked at Draco who simply raised an eyebrow at her. "Mum, dad, this is Ma-Draco. Draco Malfoy."

Mr Granger smiled and leant forward in his seat to offer his hand to Draco. The blonde simply stared at it for a moment, but after a pleading look from Hermione he subtly rolled his eyes and shook the man's hand. "Thank you for your hospitality, sir." He said. Well, Mr Granger certainly hadn't had any choice in the matter, but Draco had been brought up to be polite to adults. So polite he would be. To a certain extent, anyway.

"Quite alright," Mr Granger taken aback at Draco's politeness but nevertheless smiled in return. He hadn't expected a boy who had thus far sat sullenly watching them to be so courteous. "And where did you meet my daughter?"

"He's a schoolmate," Hermione quickly explained. "He goes to Hogwarts too."

Her parents sighed. Obviously their daughter was still stuck on this 'Hogwarts' place.

"I don't know what this school is that you're talking about, or why you would think you have been there for five years, but you got into Queen Elizabeth's (¹), remember?" Her mother said.

"You were so pleased when you got the letter confirming it," Mr Granger said carefully.

Hermione's face fell and she looked from one parent to the other slowly. "Wh-what?" She whispered. "Queen Elizabeth's?" It had been the school she had planned on applying for once she left primary school. But, of course, once she had received her Hogwarts letter she hadn't given the other school a second thought.

Her mother nodded, while her father frowned slightly. "Where did you really meet Draco, Hermione? It can't have been at school,"

"But it was!"

"Hermione, you go to an all girls' school," Mrs Granger pointed out.

"But I don't, I-"

"She's telling the truth," Draco finally felt sorry for the Gryffindor. "We go to Hogwarts; it's a school for witchcraft and wizardry."

Hermione watched, dismayed, as both her parents simply gave Draco blank looks. What was going on, why did they have no idea what school she'd attended for the past few years? Realisation dawned on her and she sighed heavily.

"Hermione?" Her mother asked in concern.

Hermione turned to Draco. "It's the spell," She said lowly. "It's wiping everything magical from the world, so it stands to reason that it wipes peoples' memories of it," She watched as Draco suddenly caught on and he frowned, also looking dejected.

Mr Granger sighed and Hermione turned her attention back to him. "Hermione, this has been a very strange evening and to be honest, I'm quite tired, so what's say we try and sort out this problem tomorrow? That'll give you time to think about what you're really doing away from school during term time."

Although he wasn't actually accusing her of lying, Hermione was suddenly made to feel very small. She nodded and stood up. "Okay, Draco and I will go to bed." She saw her parents' eyes widen and Draco pulling a face and quickly continued, "Not together! I mean, he's been staying in the guest room."

Mr Granger nodded and Hermione hurried from the room. Draco stood and slowly followed her, mumbling a 'good night' to her parents. Just as he walked out of the door he heard Mr Granger speak to his wife quietly and paused to listen

"Don't know what she's playing at…maybe it's the boy's influence," There was a non-committal grunt from Mrs Granger. "A schoolmate…" Draco could picture Mr Granger shaking his head in amusement. "Most likely she was just embarrassed to introduce him to us…probably her boyfriend…"

Draco's jaw dropped and he stared at the door. Him…and _Granger_…dating?

&&&

_A/N: Yeah…not too sure that I like this chapter…somehow I don't think I conveyed the correct reactions from the Grangers upon finding their daughter not at school when she was meant to be, but c'est la vie._

_Also…we all thought Draco had changed for the better since being forced to stay with Hermione, but apparently not. I didn't mean to turn him back into someone who would enjoy watching someone else get into trouble, but never mind!_

(¹) _yes this is a real school, I did some research lol. The full name is Queen Elizabeth's Girls' School…I just figured that had she never heard of Hogwarts, Hermione would probably be an all-girls' school type person :D_


End file.
